*See an example of a website that uses 2checkout! Click on
the link below, then on the order button
and see how beautiful the 2checkout.com interface integrates
with your existing website because of the ability to add your
own header and footer: http://www.minority-scholarship.net/order.htm

Even non-members can now check out quickly in Paypal, using
their credit card!

PayPal: The Grand Daddy of Online Sales Transactions

PayPal makes it easy for anyone to take payments over
the Net with no need for a merchant account. What that means
to you is lower fees and a level playing field. If you've
been hesitant to start your online business because you thought
you couldn't afford your own merchant account, PayPal is all
you really need.

2. Premier: For buying and selling under your own
name. Send payments for frëe, with low fees for accepting
monëy.

3. Business: This is perfect for your online business.
Add your own name to be included on your customer's credït
card statements. Sending monëy is frëe, but you
are charged small fees to accept payments.

There are no set up fees and the fee you pay PayPal
when accepting cash is based on your sales volume for the
month.

Rates:
Standard Rate: $0 to $3,000 - pay 2.9% and .30 per transaction
Merchant Rate: $3,000 to $10,000 - 2.5% and .30 per transaction
$100,000 and up - 1.9% and .30 per transaction.

To apply for the merchant rate, you'll have to have one month
of sales that meet the ranges above and fill out a short application
to get approved.

Many of the options I'm going to point out to you are for
"business accounts" only, so you'll want to go that
route when registering or upgrade your current account to
that level.

Paypal has added so many new features over the years, it's
hard to keep up with just how powerful it is. I'm amazed every
day at the variety of features that can make your life as
an online entrepreneur run as smooth as silk.

Easy to implement - no CGI scripting necessary

No up-front costs - you'll have the same low fee schedule
used when you receive other PayPal payments

1) Shopping Carts: If you sell multiple items on your
site, PayPal has a built in shopping cart. Just copy and paste
their buttons for an immediate store front. No third party
software needed.

2) Subscriptions/Recurring Payments: If you sell a
service that needs to be paid for monthly, you can set up
this type of payment option on your site. This is great for
trial periods and membership sites.

3) Donations: Maybe you don't sell anything, but you
have a very informative site or newsletter. A PayPal button
suggesting your readers make a donation is one way to help
defray your costs.

4) Optional PayPal Accounts: One of the drawbacks
to using PayPal used to be your buyer had to register for
their own PayPal account. This is no longer true and you can
select in your control panel to make it optional, not mandatory.

5) Customized Payment Pages: You can add your website
colors and logo to PayPal's payment pages. You can create
and save up to three different page styles for a seamless
checkout process.

6) Logo Center: If you accept PayPal on your site
you'll want to add logos to your website letting the world
know. You'll find many shapes and sizes to use.

7) Invoicing: Send your customers detailed invoices
via email. You can include detailed line items, descriptions,
tax and more. You can save up to 10 customized invoices for
later billing purposes.

8) Payment Request Wizard: Did you know you can add
payment buttons to your Outlook and Outlook Express messages?
This is a quick and easy way to get paid faster.

9) PayPal Debit Card: If you have a PayPal account
you'll want to get a debit card to go with it so you can easily
access your funds at at any ATM. The card has a Mastercard
logo so you can go shopping and the monëy will come out
of your PayPal balance. You can also use it to draw out cash
from your account up to $400.00 per day. You'll also earn
1.5% cashback on your purchase.

10) Refunds: Anytime you receive a payment, you can
easily refund it by clicking a button up to 60 days after
the sale.

11) Mass Pay: Easily send payments to large groups
of people. This would be an easy way to pay your affiliates
if you run your own affïliate program.

12) Packing Slips: If you sell hard goods you can
create packing slips for your shipments.

14) Seller Protection Policy: If you meet their guidelines
you can protect yourself from liability and PayPal will absorb
the chargeback at no cost to you. Covers up to $5,000 on any
fraudulent transaction and is for tangible goods only.

15) Auto Return: You set the url for your buyers to
come back to after they make their payments. Great for setting
up your download page for what they purchased and makes for
immediate delivery.

Since eBay also owns PayPal, they've also integrated
some pretty cool tools for eBay Sellers:

1) End of Auction Emails: When your auction ends,
wouldn't it be nice if you could send a customized email with
all of the details included automatically? Now you can. This
is great for putting nervous buyers at ease when they are
waiting to hear from you.

2) Auction Logos: If you want to offer an option in
your eBay listings so buyers can pay you directly you can
manually add a PayPal logo to do so.

3) Post Sale Manager: If you sell many items on eBay
it can be a full time job tracking it all. With PayPal Post
Sale Manager you can easily manage invoices, shipments, and
feedback on everything you sell.

4) Shipping Center: USPS and UPS have teamed up with
PayPal to offer you integrated service in one location. Calculate
shipping costs, print shipping labels, track shipments and
much more.

5) Buyer Financing: Add promotional financing to your
"big ticket" items so your eBay buyers can more
easily afford to purchase with monthly payments. Buyers are
approved within 30 seconds and you get paid your full price
immediately.

6) eBay Gift Certificates: Send eBay Gift certificates
to your friends and family so they can buy anything on eBay
as long as the seller accepts PayPal.

As you can see, PayPal is all you need to run your online
business. If you thought all you could do was accept or send
payments, you're missing out on the powerful features that
makes PayPal the perfect business partner for any entrepreneur.
And as partners go, that's one thing you can both agree on.

What is a third party merchant account?

A third party credit card processor is a company that can accept
online credit card orders on behalf of you or your company. This
makes obtaining a merchant account for your company unnecessary.
The rates vary and there is a small setup fee but no monthly fees
or gateway fees. Transactions happen on their website with a link
back to yours. Many allow you to customize the payment page to look
like your own website. This type of account is ideal for small online
stores with minimal sales or for subscription type websites that
need recurring billing such as web hosting companies.

What type of merchant account should I choose?

Any business that is just starting out and will not incur a lot
of online sales yet, could consider a third party merchant account
and then if sales pick up and maybe get to over $1000/month consistently,
make the switch to a personal merchant account but do realize that
this may result in extra web design fees or your website being down
while changes are being made. So if you already anticipate a successful
website and want to be set up right from the beginning, then don't
pick a third party merchant account. See below the
third party merchants or the top choice
for your own merchant account

Third party merchant account review:

I am only recommending 3 good third party merchant accounts here
because the rest of them are too expensive and are not worth looking
at. The ones that are reasonable are 2checkout
, Propay, and Paypal:
Of all 4 plans we chose Paypalas our winner with its many options and now easier and faster
checkout for non-members.